Dream Big
I was very fortunate on Friday and Saturday to be part of a senior leadership meeting for a $70M firm that has faced a dramatic decline in revenue and personnel because of the collapse of the land development market in this country. For those two days, we didn’t focus on the woes of the business, but instead, we focused on the following:
- validating the vision that they as a team had developed only 18 months prior
- confirming the organizational structure that they had morphed to in response to that vision
- affirming the culture that they had worked hard to embrace when they had developed the vision and then changed their structure
- reviving themselves as leaders in recognition of the tough decisions they have made and committing themselves to dream big even though the recovery is not yet in full swing
I smiled when I read the program, because I knew even before it started that something special was going to happen. This company has suffered enormously these past two years. They have said good-bye to long time team members, friends and family as part of an ongoing restructuring in response to the decline in revenues. They have pared back expenses and shut down offices, conserving cash, minimizing losses and committing themselves to being great stewards of their owner’s money even when they have very explainable reasons for losses. And they have survived as a 480 person, technically talented, deeply qualified business when many of their partners, clients and peers have gone under.
Why? It’s simple. The focus was not on survival, but on a credible, challenging and motivating vision of growth. While others succumbed to the negative events of the market place, this company rallied around their strengths. They shared the burdens of a collapsing customer base, and looked across their enterprise to anchor themselves on those areas where they could reach out and hold on and weather this devastating economic storm. And they have! Though smaller today than two years ago, they are leaner and stronger. And though they may not know it just yet, from my observations, they are also more mobile and more agile as a company than they ever were before!
Amidst all the challenge, all the change, all the restructuring and downsizing, they have chosen to dream big. As managers, they can take (and have taken) prudent steps in advance of (and response to) the market. And they have done just that. But as leaders, even more importantly, they can choose (and have chosen) to look beyond the wall of the storm at the recovery that is just over the horizon.
They are indeed dreaming big now!
PS. When you dream big, great people who can help you achieve that dream want to join your team! Be ready to be excited if you do dream big!